He's a Mile Away
by Idiosylph
Summary: A story of Macavity, the events that led to him becoming the Napoleon of Crime, the most hated of cats, and how one queen helped him to find all that he had lost.
1. The Journey

He's A Mile Away

He's A Mile Away: Chapter One

Macavity glared at nothing in particular, but at the same time everything within sight. And given that his current perch was on top of a shipping crate down at the docks, that was a lot. He often came to this place to think, and that was happening more and more often these days. A low growl escaped Macavity's throat. What was going wrong? Everything used to be so easy for him. Now, now everything was different.

The day before he had made another attempt to lure Demeter back to his lair. But the gold and black queen was becoming wary, and he hadn't even managed to get her out of the protective bounderies of the Junkyard before she had raised the alarm. Demeter's cries had quickly brought the toms to the scene. Mungojerrie, Skimbleshanks, Coricopat, Alonzo, and of course, his brother Munkustrap. Fustrated, Macavity took a vicious swipe at an offending gull that had dared to venture too close to him. With a sigh, he shook his dusty coat. As of late, the very powers that had helped him to become the Napoleon of Crime in the feline world seemed to be fading. The other day while climbing down a fire escape, he had fallen. If he hadn't been born a Jellicle cat, it was very likely that he would have landed squarely on his head, rather than his feet. After his last failure, he had come to the docks rather than back to his lair. His henchcats would take orders, but that was different from loyalty. If they saw that Macavity was weak in any way, the ginger cat knew that they would not hesitate to turn on him for the next strong leader who might come along.

Suddenly, whithout warning, the crate he was laying on started to move! Macavity jumped to his feet, and to the edge, but stopped stort when he looked over. The drop was a good three stories. He looked up: A crane! Macavity cursed to himself. He hadn't realized that the crate he was on was on a loading platform! The crane slowly moved out over the water, and Macavity's mind began to race. He had to get out of there somehow! If he ended up on a ship, who knew what would happen? Carefully looking down, he knew his only option was to jump into the water, however much he might hate it.

Macavity planted his feet, getting ready to jump, when the crane gave a lurch, sending him off the crate in the opposite direction! Macavity felt himself sailing through empty space, unable to find anything to grab on to. Then, he felt his head hit something with a sickening *CRACK,* and everything went black.

***

Blackness...

Somewhere in the darkness he could hear the sounds of cats padding softly around. The air was filled with scents foreign to his nose. Stuggling to sit up, he felt a gentle weight on his chest, stopping him. "Shhh. Rest." came a soft feminine voice. Tired, too tired to argue, he lay back, his head alighting on something soft. "He has started to stir." the soft voice came again.

"You will be safe if I leave?" a masculine voice replied. A mate to the queen?

"Brother, I do not believe he is in any condition to harm me." the female voice reassured the male. A brother. Siblings...

His mind clashed with itself at the thought... His body weakly reflected it.

"Quiet." the gentle weight placed itself back on his chest. The voice was not harsh, it was gentle, but the message was clear: He was to be still. "Go brother. The ship will leave without you."

The tom quietly chuckled. "I do not think they will said without Jyoutenki, the Cat of the Open Seas! Who would bring them fair weather if I was not there?" There was a small laugh from the queen, and then the sounds of the tom quietly padding off into the unkown blackness.

Moments later, the sound of soft humming reached his ears, the voice of the queen who was still beside him. He tried to focus on the voice to see who it belonged to. Eventually the form of the queen began to take shape.

She was a medium-sized queen, her limbs long, supple, but did not give the impression of being delicate. Her coat was rather long, but well-groomed. She was tri-colored. Most of her coat was white, while a rust-colored patch nearly covered the upper part of the left hand side of her face and completely covering her ears. Long black fur covered her forepaws like gloves. She had green eyes, bright and full of energy. She moved away for a moment to another part of her den and he was able to see that she was a bob-tail of some sort. Her tail couldn't have been more than an inch or two long. When she turned to come back, she noticed that her guest was now almost fully awake and watching her with keen eyes, dulled only slightly from his injury.

"How are you feeling?" she asked softly. Her voice held an accent he couldn't quite place. "You had a very bad injury. You have been unconcious for quite a while."

Quite a while... Inside he knew he had something to do... Something he was in charge of that needed him there. "How long..?" he said, voice horse from non-use.

The queen left quickly and brought back a small bowl of water. She put one hand behind him and gently propped up his head so he could drink. The thought of being so helpless repulsed him, but the water tasted so good on his partched lips that he drank greedily, and without complaint.

"What is your name?"

He looked up, his attention drawn from the water to the queen. "What?" he asked.

"Your name." she repeated. "I am Hatsuyuki. Who are you?"

He raised a shaky hand to his head. "My name..." It was important... Every cats' name was important... "I can't remember..." A hint of fright entered his voice, and he despised himself for it. What would this queen think of him, a cat with no name? He managed to look back at her. To his vast surprise, there was only a gentle smile on her face.

"I understand." she said quietly. "Your injury must have taken your memory." She leaned the tom back gently. "With luck, you will recover it completely. Is there anything you do remember?"

He sighed and thought. All he could see was red... through the red there were the faces of many cats, all of which were contorted into faces of fright or anger. "Nothing good..." he said quietly.

The queen sighed. "Then we'll have to give you a name until you remember your own."

"What?!" he roared, or tried to. He was too weak and fell back, the queen catching him in her arms. With a pitiful moan, he let his head roll into the cradle of her arm and shoulder.

_A fierce cat. His past could not have been a happy one._ she thought as she started to rock him gently, coaxing him back to sleep. "Hiodoshi." she said quietly, looking at his long red coat. "The cat with the scarlet suit of armor."

***

A beam of sunlight filtered through the cracks in the old Toyota, gently warming Hatsuyuki where she sat, keeping an eye on her charge. She had been glad when the strange tom had finally started to come out of his unconcious state. Her brother, Jyoutenki, had found him on the shipping vessel laying in a crate full of yarn, blood barely visible running through his red fur. Jyou had managed to keep him hidden from his humans, and occassionally was able to bring water to him (although Hatsu doubted the red tom would remember that). When the ship had finally reached its final destination of Tokyo, Jyou had brought the tom to their home in an old scrapyard. The Toyota was the perfect place for the strange tom to recover, and Hatsu had been keeping watch over him ever since he had come.

Hiodoshi. The cat with the scarlet armor.

It looked as if that name would be a fitting one for this tom. Even for one who had been unconcious for such a long period of time as he had, his coat was still dirty, showing that this tom had led a hard life. He was well muscled and looked to be quite strong. She had seen only a fraction of what he was capable of when he had violently objected to her finding a temporary name for him. But that she could understand. No cat wanted to be simply named. He was an English tom, that much was certain, but other than that, he was an enigma to her.

"Uuuunngh." Hiodoshi groaned. He looked around. The inside of a car trunk. That was familiar, at least. But everything else... He opened his eyes to see Hatsu watching him with keen green eyes.

"Are you feeling any better today?" she asked, slowly getting up and walking over to sit by his side.

Hiodoshi managed to prop himself up slightly. "A little." He answered, still feeling ashamed to be seen in such a state.

"Would you like something to eat?" Hatsu asked. Hio nodded slightly. Without saying a word, Hatsu quietly left and came back a few minutes later with some salmon, which she placed in front of Hio. "Eat this. I will go see if I can find some milk for you."

Hio looked at the salmon. It was fresh, the smell enticing him tremendously. He ate with a vengance, and rightfully so, considering how long it had been since his last meal. Placing the tray aside, he thought for a moment about his hostess. _A lovely looking queen._ he thought. Looking back at the tray, he wondered what the queen and her brother would ask for in repayment. He had nothing to his name. Returning, Hatsu placed an old _o-cha_ cup in front of him which was filled with milk.

"It will help you to recover your stregnth." she said gently, urging him to drink. Hio hesitated. He was already deep in debt to this queen.

"There is no way I'll be able to repay you for this." he said roughly, looking away. His ginger fur obscuring his eyes from her sight, much to his relief.

Hatsu smiled and shook her head. "You are not expected to." she said gently. "It is my duty from the Everlasting Neko to help those in need. Please, drink."

_Everlasting Neko? Neko. Cat. Everlasting Cat._ Those words, that name... So cold to him, like something that had been ripped out of the fabric of his being. Hio clenched his paw tightly, his long claws drawing blood from his palm.

Hatsu's eyes opened in horror. "Stop!" she cried, grabbing his wrist, forcing him to open his hand.

The cup fell, spilling the milk onto the floor.

Hio looked down at the white liquid, slowly seeping through the cracks of the old Toyota's frame. He felt a growl starting to build in his chest, his other paw tensing and shaping itself into a deadly mass of claws. This... _queen_ had dared to lay a hand on him!? But then he felt something. He paused and slowly looked over at her.

Hatsu had opened his paw and was gently licking the deep claw marks he had inflicted upon himself. The action itself wasn't so unusual. Hio had blurry memories of licking worse wounds than this on himself. But to have a queen do it for him? When had the last time been when a queen had come near him without fear?

From the haze a face appeared. A queen's face. Yellow, white, streaks of black and red... Green eyes filled with a mixture of hatred and terror. And those eyes, like a mirror, they reflected his own image. He saw himself, a monster, face contorted into a fierce snarl with emotionless eyes gazing down at the queen. A pitiful groan escaped his lips, and Hio held his head in his uninjured hand. Gently finishing his hand, Hatsu placed it softly on the tom's lap. She gently brushed aside his unruely mane of ginger fur to see tears gathering at the corners of Hio's tightly clenched eyes. She could see his broad shoulders shuddering, knowing that he must be putting all his energy into containing the sobbs that threatened to overcome him.

Hio didn't appear to realize the queen was there any longer. "A monster." he choaked. "That's all I am... A monster. The Everlasting Cat doesn't even count me as one of her kittens... She's left me... Everything she gave me is gone."

Hatsu moved lightly around the large tom. She didn't know what he ment at all, but she could feel the pain radiating from him. A queen who had taken the duity of nursing others, she had always been sensitive to emotion, pain in particular. Alighting next to him, Hatsu gently raised his head to face her by cupping his chin gently with both paws. She gave him a soft smile and drew stray fur away from his eyes. Hio looked at her, his own amber eyes wet with unshed tears. "You are no monster." she said in a low, soothing voice.

"I am, you don't understand, I am." Hio insisted, shaking his head. More and more visions flashed into his head. A silver tabby, a scarlet queen, two twin burglers, a young tuxedoed tom. All cursing him, shouting curses on a name which he couldn't hear. He was hated. Coldness, banishment, that's all he could remember. Suddenly, the tears broke a barrier that had been built over the course of years.

Then from the cold darkness he felt two warm arms encircling him. Hatsu pulled Hio to her, letting his head rest on her chest, her fur absorbing the falling tears. "You are no monster." she quietly repeated, her hand gently stroking the back of Hio's head. "You may have done evil, but there is no evil so great that one cannot attone."

The feel of her soft fur against his face calmed Hio somewhat, but he shook his head. "I've killed cats, I know I have. I almost struck you. And you were doing nothing more than helping me."

"But you didn't strike me." Hatsu murmered soothingly. "A cat can change. If one so desires even the foulest of _oni_ can become the most pure of _kiren_."

Hio looked up at her in amazement. "You say that... But to a cat who's been abandoned by the Everlasting Cat?"

Hatsu smiled down at him and stroked his forehead. "You have not been forsaken. Afterall, were you not brought to my home? The Everlasting Neko would not have done so if she thought you lost to her." Hio looked down.

"The milk." he said at last. "I've wasted it."

"It is of no matter." Hatsu said. "I can get more. Besides, I think something greater has come of today."

Hio nodded. "A new life." 


	2. The Dreams

He's A Mile Away

He's A Mile Away: Chapter Two

"Macavity, please see reason!" Old Deuteronomy begged of his oldest son. The ginger tom sneered.

"See reason? What reason?!" he bellowed at his sire. "Those humans mean to drive us from our rightful home and you want us to do nothing!"

"That's not true, Macavity!" Munkustrap, Macavity's younger brother jumped up in his sire's defence. "Old Deuteronomy's found a new home for us. He's recieved the blessing of the Everlasting Cat, there's nothing wrong with this new home." 

Macavity whirled to face his silver brother. "Nothing wrong with running like cowards, you mean." he hissed.

The two brothers faced each other, the other tribemembers nervously sitting to the sides. The brothers were evenly matched, Munkustrap's cool demenor matching his silver coat in sharp contrast to the flaming temper of Macavity's red one. If there was a fight, it would either be determined by Munkustrap's skill or Macavity's strength.

Old Duteronomy sat on the tire. Never before had he been at such odds against his son. Macavity hadn't been his ideal choice as Jellicle Protector, but as the eldest it was his position by birth. Munkustrap would have been the better suited to the task, but he was the younger and only if something were to happen to Macavity would Munkustrap step up to the roll. Out of one corner of his eye, a patch of orange moved. Old Deuteronomy turned his head to see the Railway Cat, Skimbleshanks, moving to stand next to the youthful Munkustrap. The orange tabby had a level head. Perhaps he could do something... Do the impossible task of trying to change the mind of Macavity.

"Macavity, lad, I know it isnna gonna be easy for any of us." he said in his thick Scottish brogue. "But these are humans we're talkin' about. We canna fight them. The only magic cat we have, wee Quaxo over there, isnna even weaned yet." he continued, tilting his head towards a three week old Quaxo held securely in the arms of his mother, Noilly Prat. "There's no shame in avoidin' a fight ye canna win."

"Can't fight them? You mean won't fight them." Macavity spat. "But if you won't do something, I will." he hissed and turned to walk out of the Junkyard.

Old Deuteronomy stood. "Macavity." The red tom stopped, but didn't turn. "Take no action against those humans." Old Deuteronomy's word. That was Jellicle Law. Macavity gave a low growl and stalked out of the yard, the Jellicle tribe watching as their protector left them.

The Jellicle Leader looked down at his younger son, who was still looking after his brother, the brother who had at one time been his hero. Although he didn't want to admit it, the old tom knew that soon the young tom would have to assume his brother's cast-off mantle. Would he be ready for it? 

***

Macavity watched from a nearby roof as the construction company's warehouse was engulfed by flames that reached high into the night sky. He didn't bother to supress a twisted smile as he watched the firefighters try in vain to extinguish the blaze. The fire was a mix of magic he had procured from a down and out magic cat for the price of a meal and the humans' own chemicals. It wouldn't go out, not until the last timber had fallen.

"See how it feels to have one's home threatened." he said lowly. He could feel the heat of the blaze through his short coat, and decided that it was time to leave. He had much to do.

A new home. Old Deuteronomy had made that much clear. Macavity had broken Jellicle Law by burning the building and his pushishment was banishment from the tribe. Had it been worth it? Yes. His purpose had been served. When the humans sifted through the remains of the warehouse, they would find a calling card. A piece of metal with one word scratched into it:

MACAVITY

The humans would learn to fear that name. To fear a name of a creature that they at one time thought was nothing more than a common pet. Turning his back to the fire, Macavity walked away. Away from the fire, away from the Junkyard, and towards the docks. He had plans for the docks, and all those cats who idled away their time there. Oh yes he did...

***

Demeter... Macavity looked down from the fire escape at the queen who was blissfully unaware of the danger lurking above her. He smiled, exposing long canine teeth. She had grown up quite nicely. True enough, he had noticed her budding beauty before his banishment, but Macavity had given more attention to her older and more sensual sister, Bombalurina. The ginger tom was aware that his younger brother, Munkustrap, had been courting Demeter as of late and he had, on occasion, seen the two young cats together. _It appears we both have the same eye for the queens, dear brother._ Macavity thought to himself.

Quietly slipping down the fire escape, Macavity fell into step behind the yellow queen. Her step was filled with a youthfull energy and her eyes shone with the hope that the young have for life. Macavity halted and drew back a little ways when he heard the sound of a Peke. The fur on his back stood on end. He hated Pekes almost as much as humans. Demeter also heard the sound of the approaching dog, but was not as quick as her more streetwise former-tribe mate. The Peke caught the queen in it's gaze and quickly gave chase. Demeter was easy prey. She was still young, didn't know how to properly avoid a dog. Macavity thought about this new development. It might be quite a good thing indeed to have this queen in his debt.

"HELP!" Demeter called from a dead-end alley. She was backed against a wall, frantically looking for anyway to escape. The Peke looked at her with a gaze full of sadistic glee. "HEEELLLLP!" Demeter screamed louder.

"Ain't no one gonnna 'ear ya, doll." the Peke grinned/growled. "You can make this easy or 'ard..."

Demeter was frozen to the spot. She couldn't move and she was out of distance for any Jellicle to hear her. The Peke approached her, it's jowls slobbering in anticipation of a short bit of fun before a quick kill. The quick kill only if he had enough fun with the game before.

"Well, well, this certainly _won't_ do." came a smooth voice from behind the Peke. The voice sounded familiar to Demeter, but she couldn't place it. The dog turned. 

"You..." it growled. "You's the one that took down 'Enry..." 

An outline of a tall, thin tom became visible to Demeter. "And I'll do the same to you. One more Peke is nothing to me." The Peke growled, lunging at the cat. There was a blur of red as the two forms passed each other.

They both stopped.

The Peke fell, a hole ripped in it's soft underbelly.

Demeter looked at her savior, trying to place him. He had long red fur, soaked in the red blood of the Peke. His long whiskers were uncombed and his coat, that which wasn't bloodsoaked, was dusty and looked like it hadn't been groomed in months. 

"Th... thank you..." Demeter stammered, not sure whether or not she was better off with this tom or the Peke. "W... who are you?"

The tom looked down at her, a mild look of amusement crossed his face. "I guess you were a bit young when I saw you last, Demeter." he said, in a low voice. "You've done a lot of growing, very nice growing indeed." Demeter was aware that his eyes were roaming all over her body, making her feel very exposed.

She gulped. "I... I guess we must have met if you know me." she ventured, standing. "But I'm afraid I don't know who you are."

The tom walked up to Demeter, who stepped back until she was backed up against the wall. He placed one hand beside her head and licked the Peke blood off his other. Demeter shuddered. "You wound me, Demeter. You mean to tell me you don't remember Macavity." 

Demeter's eyes shot wide open. "Macavity... But... But you're banished!"

A bored look crossed his face. "Banished... Jellicles seem to forget that banished doesn't mean dead."

"But this is Jellicle territory." Demeter protested. "You're not supposed to be here!"

"Would you have prefered the Peke to kill you?" Macavity asked, smiling. "He would have, you know."

Demeter's features softened a bit. Macavity smiled. Her defences were dropping. "I'm sorry, you're right. I should be more greatful."

"Then would you mind doing me a small favor in return?" Macavity asked. "It's nothing really. You'll be back in the Junkyard by nightfall." He took a small step nearer the queen.

Demeter smiled. "I guess that would be alright." she replied. "I mean, you're Munk's brother. That means you're practically family for me now! What can I do?"

"What a sweet young thing you are." Macavity smiled. _So trusting, innocent, and so naieve..._

***

"DEMETER!" Munkustrap called from the tire. He was getting worried. Demeter should have been back hours ago. It was almost nightfall. Skimble, Alonzo and Tugger also came back from their searches. Munk looked at each of the toms, and each shook their head in turn. Jennyanydots shuffled nervously about and Jellylorum, new to the duities of assisting the Gumbie Cat looked about worriedly.

"Munkustrap..." came a small voice from the side of the yard. Munk looked over to see the outline of a queen. The voice he recognized as Demeter's right away, and he felt his heart sink as he neared her. 

The yellow queen was almost unrecognizable. Her fur was in tangles, her collar had been torn off, she was bruised, and bleeding all over. When he reached her, she collapsed into him.

The silver tabby pulled her to him. "Demeter what happened?" he asked. "What dog did this to you?"

Demeter's voice shook. "It wasn't a dog...." she sobbed, "He killed the Peke..."

Munkustrap was confused. "A human? Demeter, was it a human?" 

"It was a cat..." she whispered horsely between sobbs, "Macavity!"

***

Hio awoke in a cold sweat. Those dreams... Those haunted, memory-filled dreams that still made no sense to him. He felt the soft touch of Hatsu on his shoulder. "Hio..?" she asked quietly. "The dreams again?" He nodded.

Hatsu had been patiant with him. After several weeks of nursing, Hio had started to feel strong enough to get up and walk around. It had been shaky at first, his rage nearly getting the better of him on several occasions when his legs refused to cooperate with him. But Hatsu's calm influence had always been nearby and gave him aid in such a way that he no longer felt ashamed of his weakness. In return, as he had grown stronger he had started to help her around the den, moving heavier objects that her smaller frame couldn't handle, occasionally chasing away a stray Peke or two. The first time he had done that, Hio was amazed to find that he was actually able to wrestle the dog to the ground, and might have delivered a fatal blow to the poor creature had Hatsu not interceeded on it's behalf.

But that had caused a blow to Hio. He had nearly killed, something that he had sworn he wouldn't do again. Retreating to his corner of the den, Hio had isolated himself from Hatsu's concerned gaze. It was only after a great deal of urging on Hatsu's part that Hio emerged.

"I nearly killed it." he said, as if for the first time in his life, the horror of the very idea of killing something hit him. "And right in front of you..."

"Hio, you are trying." Hatsu replied. "No one can change overnight, memory or no. You didn't kill it. You listened to me. You heard reason."

He looked at her with pleading eyes. "Then, you don't hate me?" he asked, the thought of his actions repulsing her, causing her to leave him forever terrifying him.

"No." she smiled, gently brushing his cheek. "I don't hate you at all." And to emphasize the point, Hio felt her arms gently hug him. 

"Even after I tell you those dreams?" he asked. "The one with the queen?"

"Even that dream." she replied quietly. "Hio, I'm going to take you someplace tomorrow. Somewhere where you will be able to help purify your spirit."

Hio looked at her, confused. "I don't understand." She smiled.

"You don't have to right now." 

***

Hio lay on a pile of empty bags, looking out of the truck the two cats were riding in. Hatsu still hadn't told him exactly where they were going, fustrating him. He looked down at her. She was sleeping on another pile of bags. His frown dissapated and he smiled a little.

It was a gentle smile, the type he somehow knew he hadn't used very much in a long time. Hio knew that Hatsu was having an effect on him. Although what exactly the effect was he couldn't really say. The feeling was so alien to him now that he couldn't even really name it. He watched the sleeping queen as she slept. As the truck bounced over bumps in the road, her fur would shift ever so slightly before falling somehow back into place. She always seemed so immaculate, so clean. He knew that he must be a fright to her. His coat was unkept, and his fur was dusty. Perhaps, perhaps if he cleaned it she would... She would what?

Hio's brow furrowed. What did he want from her? He had her friendship and support, and wasn't that what mattered to him? Settling back down, he sighed. He thought back to the dream about the queen, Demeter. He knew what he had done to her. For that alone, he didn't deserve the friendship that Hatsu extended to him. And he certainly did not deserve to have these feelings he had recipricated by her.

A sound brought him to attention. Hatsu was awake and caughed softly. "Are you alright?" Hio asked.

Hatsu looked at him and smiled. "Of course. I think there is too much dust in these bags." Hio frowned. The bags were clean. He knew his nose to be the more sensitive of the two, and he smelt nothing but the light scent of a detergent.

***


End file.
